De-clutter and organize before school resumes

  • By Angie Hicks
  • Tuesday, July 22, 2014 1:46pm
  • Life

People often think of January or spring as high seasons for home organization. But for those of us with school-age kids, late summer is prime time to clear excess and create a better system to handle what’s left and what’s on the way.

Plus, if you de-clutter before classes resume, you could plan a garage or yard sale that could fund a school-supply shopping trip or last-minute visit to the zoo or water park.

There’s an easy way to approach reorganizing any area of your house. It’s a shorthand version of tips from top-rated professional organizers that you could call the 2-D method:

Decide: Pick a room or even just part of one. Quickly, without allowing time for second thoughts, sort everything into three piles or containers: Toss, Keep and Donate/Sell.

Designate: Find a place for everything that stays, storing things near where they’re used and putting like items together. For example, keep school supplies where homework is done, and sneakers, boots, umbrellas and coats near the door you use most often. Designate a place for each item, at appropriately accessible heights and locations.

Some of you will be fine with the 2-D method alone. But here are additional pro-organizer tips for tackling specific challenges:

Children’s artwork: Aim to keep work that reflects special moments, such as self-portraits or the first time a child writes his or her name. One mom I know has an inbox for all school and art papers. She sorts it quarterly, or when it gets too high. Some things she keeps, some things she photographs. The key is to periodically edit, with the goal of keeping just a handful of art examples per year, per child. Store “keepers” in a large, under-bed storage box. When that’s full, sort again. And as your child matures and understands that not everything can be kept, he or she can help with sorting.

Your desk or personal work area: For some of us, it’s the kitchen counter or dining room table. Wherever it is, keep the surface clear of what isn’t used often. Create a filing system that lets you quickly find what you need. Set up an “inbox” for new bills/fliers/mail and an “outbox” for completed items. File finished work as it’s done, or on a regular schedule.

Closets: Plan to set aside several hours per closet. Remove everything. Sort into categories by type: pants, skirts, tops, shoes, etc. Evaluate each item, separating out what you want to donate, sell or have repaired. Organize the rest by category, color and season.

Housework: In a central area, designate a bin for each family member, into which you place stray items that loved ones put away weekly. To keep housework manageable, focus on one task per day. For example, designate one day for dusting, another for vacuuming, etc.

Kitchen: Discard or recycle mismatched storage containers. Store lids in the largest container; stack the rest inside each other. Increase storage space by extending kitchen cabinets to the ceiling, hanging pots from a rack, and adding partitions, turntables or stacking platforms to drawers and cabinets.

Garage: With sidewalk chalk, section off your driveway into Toss, Keep and Donate/Sell areas. Break the Keep area into subcategories, such as tools, pet supplies, yard care, sports items and paint supplies. When putting things back, store like items together.

Organizing your home can be a rewarding do-it-yourself project that you can accomplish over weeks or months. But if you lack time, ability or desire, consider hiring a top-rated organizer to advise you or take on the project. Other service providers who can help include trash haulers and estate sale experts.

Angie Hicks is the founder of Angie’s List, www.angieslist.com, a resource for consumer reviews.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Sarah Jean Muncey-Gordon puts on some BITCHSTIX lip oil at Bandbox Beauty Supply on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Langley, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Bandbox Beauty was made for Whidbey Island locals, by an island local

Founder Sarah Muncey-Gordon said Langley is in a renaissance, and she’s proud to be a part of it.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Byrds co-founder Roger McGuinn, seen here in 2013, will perform April 20 in Edmonds. (Associated Press)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

R0ck ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer Roger McGuinn, frontman of The Byrds, plans a gig in Edmonds in April.

Mother giving in to the manipulation her daughter fake crying for candy
Can children be bribed into good behavior?

Only in the short term. What we want to do is promote good habits over the course of the child’s life.

Speech Bubble Puzzle and Discussion
When conflict flares, keep calm and stand your ground

Most adults don’t like dissension. They avoid it, try to get around it, under it, or over it.

The colorful Nyhavn neighborhood is the place to moor on a sunny day in Copenhagen. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves: Embrace hygge and save cash in Copenhagen

Where else would Hans Christian Andersen, a mermaid statue and lovingly decorated open-face sandwiches be the icons of a major capital?

Last Call is a festured artist at the 2024 DeMiero Jazz Festival: in Edmonds. (Photo provided by DeMiero Jazz Festival)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Jazz ensemble Last Call is one of the featured artists at the DeMiero Jazz Festival on March 7-9 in Edmonds.

Kim Helleren
Local children’s author to read at Edmonds Bookshop

Kim Helleren will read from one of her books for kids at the next monthly Story Time at Edmonds Bookshop on March 29.

Chris Elliott
Lyft surprises traveler with a $150 cleaning charge

Jared Hakimi finds a $150 charge on his credit card after a Lyft ride. Is that allowed? And will the charge stick?

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.